The BMW 7 Series is a four or five-passenger executive luxury sedan offered with a broad variety of powerplant options, and thus an extensive range of personalities from the quick, but relatively sedate, to the outrageously fast. The model designation dates back to 1977 when it was created as a more sporting alternative to staid luxury barges like the Mercedes-Benz S-Class. 

The 2022 BMW 7 Series is the German automaker’s biggest and most opulent sedan. It excels as a luxury barge but isn’t quite as sporty as most older BMWs, including its equally large predecessors. BMW

The current, sixth-generation 7 was introduced in 2015 as a 2016 model, and got a significant refresh for 2020. It’s now nearly through its seven-year life cycle and BMW made only tiny changes in 2021 and again for 2022. In this highly competitive category, where consumers want the latest, greatest and best, the 7’s age is showing, especially when contrasted with newer competitors like the latest Mercedes-Benz S-Class, the Audi A8 and the upstart Genesis G90. 

None of those cars come cheap, and the 7 Series is just as loftily-priced. The base model 740i starts at $87,895, including a $995 destination fee, and features a creamy 320 horsepower twin-turbocharged version of the inline six-cylinder 3.0-liter engine for which BMW is famed. This model is the only one in the lineup available with rear-wheel-drive and will zip from 0-60 in 5.3 seconds. All-wheel-drive—xDrive, in BMW-speak—is available for $3,000 more, and the increased grip reduces the run to 60 mph to 4.8 seconds. 

A step up from there in price nets the $96,895 745e xDrive, a plug-in hybrid that features a slightly detuned version of this same straight-six motor, good for 289 horsepower, but adds a 111-horsepower electric motor and rechargeable battery pack. Given the additional weight of the batteries, the 0-60 time for this 400-horsepower sedan is on par with its gas-only sibling, at 4.9 seconds, but the lithium-ion cells allow it to travel up to 17 miles on electric power alone. Buyers of such cars aren’t misers at the pump, but the 740 and 745 return better gas mileage than any of their peers at up to 25 mpg combined.

The 7 Series interior looks good and has lots of room for all passengers, but it isn’t particularly memorable in design terms. BMW’s infotainment system is second to none, but the hard controls work better than the hand-gesture ones. BMW

Up above these is the $103,995 750i xDrive, which bumps the engine up to BMW’s twin-turbocharged 523 horsepower 4.4-liter V8, bringing the 0-60 time down to a horizon-blurring 3.5 seconds. If that isn’t enough, the performance-oriented $157,800 M760i xDrive stuffs a version of the V-12 from BMW Group sibling Rolls-Royce into the engine bay. It brings 600 horsepower and virtually all of the options on the 7 Series list, but its weight makes it marginally slower than the 750i.

The real star of the 7 Series lineup is available for less, the $143,200 B7, modified for BMW by famed marque tuner Alpina. In addition to featuring special leather and trim, and a distinctive instrument panel, inside, and special wheels and aero add-ons outside, it hosts upgrades to the suspension, transmission, and 4.4-liter V8. With 600 horsepower it achieves its run to 60 in just 3.4 seconds. The Alpina name also carries considerable enthusiast cred.

Why the emphasis on zero to 60 times? All versions of the 7 Series are reasonably quick, but aside from the B7, this biggest Bimmer places more emphasis on comfort than driving dynamics. It’s certainly smooth, but so are all the other big luxury machines, some of which offer more equipment and tech in their lower-tier models.

Rear seat accommodations in the 7 Series are truly first class and can be optioned to include separate entertainment systems, a tablet that operates the car’s infotainment system and even a Boeing-style folding tray table. BMW

A host of upgrades are available, of course, including 19, 20, and 21-inch wheels. (That last option is B7-only). There are $1,500, $2,000, and $5,000 upholstery packages with different, and increasingly supple, types of leather. The $3,000 premium package includes Nappa leather, but also offers a head-up display, and power rear and side window shades. The $2,500 executive package includes ventilated front seats, a leather dashboard and a truly delightful LED-impregnated panoramic glass sunroof that makes the cabin look like a 1970s discotheque. 

The $3,900 luxury rear seating package integrates heated, cooling, massaging, and reclining functions in the rear seats, along with a 7-inch tablet for back seat passengers, though on upmarket 7s a $5,750 rear executive lounge configuration adds even more wizardry like a power-operated footrest, a pair of LCD screens, and a fold-up airline-style table for the right-seat passenger. 

The $4,100 autobahn package includes four-wheel-steering, an array of cameras and other whiz-bang upgrades that see down the road and stabilize the suspension in advance of bumps. Finally, the $1,700 driving assistance package adds the latest in camera and sensor-based technology that allows semi-autonomous starting, stopping, following at a safe distance and lane keeping. More common active-safety kit like forward automatic emergency braking, blind spot detection, adaptive headlights and lane departure warnings are all standard.

 It’s not cheap, but the star of the 7 Series lineup is the Alpina B7, modified by the BMW-affiliated tuner car company. It’s more athletic and less expensive than the top-spec V12 M760i. BMW

The 7’s interior offers lots of room and an opulent if sober design aesthetic. The big 10.3-inch infotainment screen runs BMW’s user-friendly iDrive 7.0, and the system can be extended to rear-seat passengers with the right options. The touch and dial controls, however, work a lot better than the hand-gesture options BMW touts, which don’t seem fully cooked.  

Competitors bring their A-game in this category. The new Mercedes-Benz S-Class really doubles-down on tech, and features that combine luxury and delight. The Audi A8 and S8 are intensely athletic, with interiors that shine with sparkly screens, including an innovative digital dashboard. The Genesis G90 offers unique design features, a sumptuous and easy-to-use interior, and loads of features for a lower price. 

The big 7 Series is distinctively BMW both in front and in back. It’s handsome, but a polarizing design. BMW

While none of them can touch the all-new Mercedes—forever the category leader and benchmark—the BMW just about splits the difference between the G90 and the Audi, with huge amounts of space, especially in the rear, a reserved athleticism, and (generally) usable tech. The Alpina B7 version shines as a unique offering that perfectly melds performance and comfort. It feels more like the kind of M7 flagship the company should have built.

With freshened competition from its stalwart German rivals, as well as the encroachment of Genesis—which has yet to turn out a performance variant of any of its models—it’s hard to recommend the BMW (save the Alpina B7) over any of these options at this stage in its life cycle.